tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1377385119326285192.post6998709463084398202..comments2024-02-23T00:27:41.196-08:00Comments on Refugees From the City: On Bilingual CulturesJohn the Scientisthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03467337009577733553noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1377385119326285192.post-24674530437266087152008-02-21T09:09:00.000-08:002008-02-21T09:09:00.000-08:00John, I was stationed there as part of US Naval fo...John, I was stationed there as part of US Naval forces. I lived in Espana Sur, en la ciudad de Rota. (Yeah, that's about the extent of my Spanish these days, alvido mucho).<BR/><BR/>I lived out on the Spanish economy, off base, for about 3 years. Wonderful place, I loved Spain. Wonderful people, the best wine in the world (screw French wine, bah), fantastic food, ancient culture. I loved it.<BR/><BR/>But, yeah, inefficiency is a hallmark of Spanish culture. They revel in it, in fact. Everything is manana (tomorrow) - we'll do it tomorrow. And at least once a week there is some type of holiday. On the other hand, nobody dies of a stress induced heart attack either. It may take long time to complete a job, but the craftsmanship is often fantastic.Jim Wrighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11259550121437562338noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1377385119326285192.post-20531751524930947102008-02-18T11:58:00.000-08:002008-02-18T11:58:00.000-08:00Jim -with whom did you work in Spain?I work with o...Jim -with whom did you work in Spain?<BR/><BR/>I work with our Spanish organizaiton quite a bit. Governmentally, they are on the level of other EU countries, because most governments are totally inefficient. The problem is that their private sector is no more efficient thatn their government.John the Scientisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03467337009577733553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1377385119326285192.post-21245011967551879742008-02-18T11:24:00.000-08:002008-02-18T11:24:00.000-08:00John, agreed.In my post, my primary beef was with ...John, agreed.<BR/><BR/>In my post, my primary beef was with the racist xenophobia of people like Dick Lamm and those who have formed their opinions of immigration by reading and propagating such crap.<BR/><BR/>I think you make some very good points, I don't know if I agreed completely with your assessment of Spain and Spanish seeded cultures. I lived in Spain for a number of years and came away with a different perspective. however, I did live and work in Central America for a number of years, and came away with a similar outlook. The situation in complex.<BR/><BR/>However - I do very much agree that there is a maximum level of immigration any nation can absorb in a given period and still maintain it's own identity and culture, and that immigrants must make an effort towards full assimilation. A provision of citizenship, and even long term guest status, should be a minimum facility with the de facto language. While I don't have a problem with providing some language help in government services, public schools must be in English. I lived in S. California for a number of years, and my son attended elementary school there - at least half of his school was Spanish speaking - and at least half of them could not, or would not, speak English. The school provided two teachers per classroom, one in English, one in Spanish. The results of this were immediate and obvious, the bilingual classes were half as complete as single language classes, the schools costs were double, and the spanish speakers had no incentive to learn English at all.Jim Wrighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11259550121437562338noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1377385119326285192.post-87160594208903169352008-02-17T12:52:00.000-08:002008-02-17T12:52:00.000-08:00I think we mostly agree John... I am a big believe...I think we mostly agree John... I am a big believer in the 'melting pot' and the value and strength that immigrants have brought to the United States. I'm also pretty moderate and pragmatic about the problem of illegal immigration from Latin America, primarily because I understand that it is impossible for the United States to simply deport all the illegals. Since we can't kick them out, we ought to figure out what to do with them. I may even have a more favorable attitude towards Latin illegals than you do, because so many of them that I have met are trying so hard to contribute to our country and economy.<BR/><BR/>But likewise I believe very strongly that immigrants, illegal or not, should learn to assimilate, for their own good as well as ours. I believe the historical lesson is not that a immigrant minority of this size or that size is a problem, but that a non-assimilating minority is ALWAYS a problem, regardless of size - whether we're talking about gypsies in Hungary or Muslims in Denmark - or whomever in the United States.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com